On Feb 15, 2021, at 10:35 AM, Michael Grimm <brothermichael24@gmail.com> wrote:
February 15, 2021
Brother,
I hope and pray all is well with you and your family today.
"Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind." - 1 Peter 3:8
When it comes to love, the secular world has plenty to say. Turn on the television, radio, or explore the internet, and you’ll find advice on every type of relationship, from friendships to getting along with your parents, and of course — advice on romantic relationships. People are clamoring to figure love out…but what does the Bible say about love?
Love isn’t about control, or about protecting our own interests. It’s not about winning, because true love doesn’t keep score. God’s Word gives us a beautiful picture of what love can be when we seek to follow the Lord: patient, kind, selfless, humble, and forgiving. That’s the kind of love we should strive to build with family, friends, and a potential mate.
If we want to take Paul’s wisdom in Corinthians to heart, we must first think about what the other person needs in our relationships. And you know, if you practice this model, you’ll find that soon enough, your own needs will be met, too! Pure love has a ripple effect.
Why is it important that we show love to fellow believers? Put simply, love is the essence of true Christianity. Without love we cannot have a close bond with fellow Christians, and more important, we amount to nothing.
In the NIV, the word “love” appears 574 times. When looking at all the ways God calls us to grow in our faith, love in action is right up there with knowing, believing, and following. Jesus talked about love as an action and gave us a compass.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have l
oved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).
Notice that God doesn’t just say, “I love you.” He demonstrated his love by sending Jesus to die for us while we were still at our worse. In doing so, we get a vivid picture of true love.
God is in charge at all times, under all circumstances. When difficult situations arise, we can turn to Him for guidance, deliverance, peace of mind. We can rise above conflict and prove that only good is unfolding, only blessings are possible, because God is governing both us and our brothers.
Faith transforms us into people of love who live differently in the world. There are plenty of distinguishing characteristics when it comes to the church. Unfortunately, and all too often, outsiders looking into the church see it as a place of hatred and condemnation. Our churches are to be oases of love. In a world where so many people feel beat down, insecure, and worn out, the behavior of a loving Christian is refreshing water for parched and weary souls.
Love is an action. What actions will we all take to Love like Jesus?
Please join me in prayer, Father because you have made us, wr owe you the whole of our love; because you have redeemed us, we owe you the whole of our self; because you have promised so much, we owe you our whole being. Moreover, we owe you as much more love than our self as you are greater than us, for whom you gave yourself and to whom you promised yourself. We pray you, Lord, make us taste by love what we taste by knowledge; let us know by love what we know by understanding. We owe you more than our whole self, but we have no more, and our self we cannot render the whole of it to you. Draw us to you, Lord, in the fullness of your love. We ask all this in Your Holy and Precious Name - AMEN.
Have a blessed and safe day and week.
STAY STRONG Today, Tomorrow and ALWAYS.
Brother please remember I am there for in thought, prayer and action - 24x7.
Love Your Brother and Friend in Christ,
Michael
215-272-2740
PS I encourage you to join our Zoom meetings. The next one will be this Thursday (2/18) evening starting at 7:00 pm.
These Zoom meetings are open to Everyone. It's been an awesome blessing to talk, share, now see and pray with other Brothers.
Below are the details. Join your Brothers from all over the world as we all strive to get closer to HIM and to each other and become BETTER men of God today, tomorrow and always.
Join Zoom Meeting - Just click the link below
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84950156389
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February 8, 2021BrotherI hope and pray all is well with you and your family today.“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” — Romans 5:8Have you ever noticed the phrase ‘But God’ in your Bible? Chances are: you have — and skated right past it. Take a closer look. From Genesis to 1 Samuel and Acts to Ephesians, almost every time the phrase occurs, it is to signal a change of scene. And each time, it is God stepping into the picture to powerfully upend a messed-up world again.The Bible tells of countless such rescue missions — but the greatest of all was when Christ stepped in to die for His enemies and offer them (us!) life after death. If that is true — it changes everything. Including our reason for living.The Christian life is beset with struggles, but His children will always be able to testify of incredible ‘But God’ moments in their lives. We hope this blog will serve as a reminder of these truths and encourage you to endure till He returns or calls us home.But God! Every time I read a verse that says “but God” it is fantastically good news. There are literally hundreds of verses that have “but God” in both the Old and New Testaments. Especially by what follows. I have heard many people I witness to say that they have too much baggage, too many sins to overcome, too much to have forgiven. I can reassure them that Holiness is not the way to Jesus, Jesus is the way to holiness. One of the most powerful things I can tell them is would be the scriptures that contain “but God….”.Once we were dead in sin, BUT GOD made us alive! Once we were captive to Satan, BUT GOD made us free! Once we were children of wrath, BUT GOD has promised to spend eternity unwrapping the riches of his grace in kindness toward us!We were dead in sin, BUT GOD made us alive with Christ.We were captive to the prince of the power of the air and enslaved to the course of this world, BUT GOD raised us with Christ and made us sit with him in the heavenly places.We were children of wrath and deserving of an eternity in the torments of hell, BUT GOD, instead of pouring out wrath, will spend eternity showing the immeasurable riches of his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved, and raised us up with him, and made us sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.Brothers this is good news!Impossible for us…but God? Nothing Is Impossible. Please join me in prayer, Dear God, some days feel too hard. We are hurting, struggling, fighting fear and worry at every turn. But in the midst of it all, you haven’t left us to fend for ourselves Forgive us for doubting You are there. Forgive us for thinking you’ve forgotten. Forgive us for believing that we somehow know the better way. You are fully trustworthy. You are all powerful. You are able. You are Lord over every situation no matter how difficult it may seem. You are Healer. Anything is possible with You. We pray for the peace of Your precence to cover our minds and thoughts, as you remind us, the enemy can never steal us out of Your hands. We pray all of this in Your Holy and Precious Name - AMEN.Have a blessed and safe day and week.STAY STRONG!Brother please remember I am there for in thought, prayer and action - 24x7.Love Your Brother and Friend in Christ,Michael 215-272-2740PS I would like to encourage you to join our Zoom meetings. The next one will be this Thursday (2/11) evening starting at 7:00 pm. These Zoom meetings are open to Everyone. It's been an awesome blessing to talk, share, now see and pray with other Brothers.Below are the details. Join your Brothers from all over the world as we all strive to get closer to HIM and to each other and become BETTER men of God today, tomorrow and always.Join Zoom Meeting - Just click the link belowhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/84950156389
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